Opel Club Cape Town

We thought that the new sub-five-second-to-sixty Golf R, with its 221kW, was getting close to the limits of a turbo 2.0-litre four cylinder.

But according to the folks at Wolfsburg, that TSI unit has more to give, at least according to the 295kW Golf R400 that’s set to be unveiled at next week’s Beijing Auto Show.

It uses the same turbo four as the Golf R, but with output boosted to just a fraction under 150kW per litre. The Bugatti Veyron’s 8.0-litre W16 manages a mere 93kW of go-per-litre.

Officially the R400 is a concept for now, but VW explicitly states that its bonkers output is ‘plausible’ – which is industry-speak for ‘a done deal’.

Want some numbers? How about 0-100kph in 3.9 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 280kph? IN A GOLF. That 295kW is fed through the same six-speed dual-clutch transmission, four-wheel drive system and suspension set-up as the new Golf R, a car we felt was able to handle added oomph.

Visually, the R400 takes inspiration from VW’s 1988 Rallye Golf G60 homologation special. The arches have been flared by an extra 20mm on each side to accommodate bigger 19-inch wheels and vanes to feed cool air onto the brakes.

Additional aerodynamic appendages have also sprouted, including a front wing, motorsport-inspired diffuser and not one, but two rear wings. There are also bigger, dual exhaust pipes (a throwback to the original R32) and yellow mascara around the headlights to differentiate the R400 from lesser Golfs. By which we mean all the Golfs.

On the inside there is, as you would expect, much carbon and Alcantara, plus deep-dish sporty seats to pin you in place.

But the big question is whether that engine is, to use VW’s own term, ‘feasible’. We suspect so. Merc’s A45 AMG makes a monstrous 265kW from a 2.0-litre four, and never when driving it do you suspect it’s on the verge of grenading itself. 295kW, we reckon, is well within VW’s grasp.

We’ll see R400 in non-sketch form this weekend. So, hot hatch fans: put on some oven gloves, as hot hatches could soon be getting a whole lot hotter. Excited?

- See more at: http://www.topgear.co.za/news/vw-golf-r ... 0Uii0.dpuf

i've had some time behind the A45 wheel.

there is NOTHING that compares in the hatch game. NOTHING!!!

Volkswagen’s insane Golf R 400 concept from the recent 2014 Beijing Auto Show has been confirmed for production, according to VW R&D chief Heinz-Jakob Neusser. Speaking with Car and Driver, Neusser revealed the good news but didn’t say whether the production version would be offered in the U.S. market.

The Golf R 400 concept is based on the latest 2015 Golf R hot hatch and was built to demonstrate the performance capabilities of the latest Golf. It features the same EA888 engine found in the Golf R, a turbocharged and direct-injected 2.0-liter four.

In the Golf R the engine delivers 290 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque, but for the Golf R 400 concept output was dialed up to 395 hp (400 horsepower in metric figures) and 332 lb-ft of torque. Incredibly, the Golf R 400’s version of the engine only received some mild revisions to handle higher boost pressure from its turbocharger, meaning we could see its performance figures maintained for production.

Also presented at the Beijing show was a second Golf concept called the Golf Edition. It was built to commemorate the popular hatchback’s 40th anniversary this year and came with a number of premium features that are likely to be offered in the Chinese market. VW says the concept was developed especially for China.

Some of the premium features were an exclusive pearl white paint scheme, 19-inch alloys, two-tone leather trim with a diamond pattern, real wood trim and a piano finish on some of the dash.

For more from the 2014 Beijing Auto Show, head to our dedicated hub.

Ok

Doubt we will get it in SA

Maybe I'm wrong though, time will tell